Grosse Pointe Farms

Purse-snatching suspect nabbed in Farms

By K. Michelle Moran
C & G Staff Writer

While she was securing her 2-year-old toddler into a car seat, a Farms woman was the victim of an early-morning purse-snatcher. But fortunately, the suspect didn’t get far.

Detective Bryan Ford said the incident took place around 6:33 a.m. Nov. 30 at a home on the corner of Calvin and Webster. The suspect, a 32-year-old Detroit man, had been walking in the neighborhood when he saw the victim’s car running in the driveway. Ford said the suspect was lying in wait on the side of the garage, and when he saw the victim set her purse on the driveway to put her child in the car seat, he raced toward her, pushing her away as he grabbed the purse and ran. The victim screamed, alerting neighbors to the situation.

“This was a crime of opportunity,” Ford said.

But Ford said officers responded immediately to the call, setting up a perimeter and distributing a description of the suspect that led to his apprehension within minutes, after one of the officers spotted a man matching that description running across Mack toward Detroit.

“It was a great job done by the whole midnight and day shift crew,” Ford said of the arrest, which enabled police to recover the victim’s purse and all of its contents and return it to her. The victim wasn’t hurt, he said.

At press time, Ford said police were hoping to have the suspect arraigned on a felony charge of unarmed robbery Dec. 1 in Farms Municipal Court. The suspect had no weapons or drugs on him when he was arrested, but Ford said he has a prior criminal history for similar incidents.

City Manager Shane Reeside praised the department for their “good police work,” noting the benefit of having officers nearby to respond so quickly.

“It was a bad situation but a good outcome where nobody was hurt,” Reeside said.

You can reach C & G Staff Writer K. Michelle Moran at kmoran@candgnews.com or at (586)498-1047.